


i know this whole damn city thinks it needs you (but not as much as i do)

by CanaryWarrior



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Auntie Gwen already ships MacRiley, Mac is oblivious about his feelings, Russ is the uncle we all need, Some Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:00:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23834275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanaryWarrior/pseuds/CanaryWarrior
Summary: Based on the promo for 4x12.Mac has gone rogue, leaving the Phoenix betrayed, hurt, and on high alert. Everyone is looking for him and Codex. He hides well but comes back because he wants a certain someone to join him.
Relationships: (briefly and only mentioned), Angus MacGyver/Desiree "Desi" Nguyen, Riley Davis & Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), Riley Davis & Russ Taylor, Riley Davis/Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 129





	i know this whole damn city thinks it needs you (but not as much as i do)

**Author's Note:**

> I came up with this after seeing the promo for 4x12. I hope everyone enjoys this!  
> Title from 'The Last of the Real Ones' by Fall Out Boy.

To say that the atmosphere of the Phoenix has changed was an understatement. About eighteen hours ago, Mac had broken out the redheaded Codex operative, released a gas to incapacitate everyone, stole Tesla’s weapon, and joined Codex. Everyone was reeling from the unexpected and heartbreaking betrayal, especially Matty, Desi, Russ, Bozer, and Riley. Everyone has been working around the clock to find Mac and Codex. Matty, bless her leadership abilities, was on top of the entire operation. Russ was reeling from the betrayal, and everyone thought that he was one step closer to madness because of Mac’s actions. Desi was brokenhearted that Mac joined Codex, but was even more so because she begged him not to do it and his response was “I think we both know it’s too late for that.” Bozer was also brokenhearted, after all, his best friend joined the enemy. He still worked to the best of his ability to help in any way he can.

And Riley? Riley was hacking like there was no tomorrow, only looking up from the screen when someone spoke to her and when Bozer and Russ made her eat and drink something. She couldn’t believe that Mac joined Codex. How could he do that? How could he betray his team? They were a family! They’ve been through so much together! But then again, Mac experienced a lot in such a short amount of time. No wonder he was swayed by Codex. Why didn’t he talk to any of them? Why didn’t she say anything when she noticed that something was clearly off with him? Why did she still have all these feelings for him?

Riley let out a frustrated sigh and put her head in her hands. She stayed like that for what felt like forever until she felt a gentle touch on her shoulder.

“Riley,” Russ said softly to the hacker. His heart went out to her and Bozer. After all, it was their best friend and Desi’s boyfriend who betrayed them.

Riley looked up. “Oh, hey, Russ. I’ll get back to work.” She moved her hands to her laptop.

Russ stopped her. “No, you won’t. You should go get some rest. I sent Bozer and Desi to their homes. They put up a fight, but we all agreed on a compromise- they’ll get some rest and come back a go bag with clothes and other necessities. They can use the showers here and we can easily get some food and set up more places for you all to sleep. I know that they want to stay here for as long as they can until we find Mac and Codex.”

“And you want me to go do the same,” Riley stated. She didn’t even realize that Desi and Bozer left.

“Yes, I do. You need to rest. You know that you need to have all your energy if you are going to hack Codex,” Russ said firmly, in that worried uncle kind of way. 

“You want me to go home? To the place I shared with Mac?” Riley questioned. How can she go back there? It didn’t feel right. It was Mac’s house, can she even live there anymore? She didn’t even find a new apartment yet! How can she go back there, with all the memories and feelings? It would just be a constant reminder of all the pain.

“I understand if you don’t feel safe going back there, and I am aware of your living situation. You can stay with me until we find you a more permanent solution. I assure you, my place is very safe. Codex won’t even know where to find you-“

“Wait, what? Why would Codex even want me? They have Mac.” Riley was confused. Obviously Russ misread her feelings as something else entirely.

“If I was a criminal organization hellbent on killing millions, I would want the best hacker possible on my team. Especially if that hacker is capable of finding me and is close to an important asset,” Russ explained. It makes sense, Riley was one of the most brilliant people here, if Mac and Codex got to her… 

Riley put a hand on the older man’s shoulder. “Russ, I would never help Codex. I would never code or hack anything for them, and they can’t make me.” Russ is definitely the most paranoid man she has ever met, but given the circumstances, she can’t blame him.

“Can Mac make you?” Russ questioned quietly. He knew how close the team was, they would do anything for each other.

“Mac would never force me to do anything. I know that he cares about us, all of us. We’ve been through too much for him to not care,” Riley insisted. “Maybe you should take your own advice,” Riley added softly. Russ needed a nap at least. “I think you need some rest.”

“I’ll rest when we catch Codex. Until then, would you like an agent to accompany you back to Mac’s place?” Russ asked, effectively changing the subject.

“Nah, I’ll be fine. Besides, the last place Mac or Codex would be is his house,” Riley assured Russ. She’s grown fond of him, he was like a worried, weird uncle to her. Not father though, that would always be Jack. She felt a pang in her chest at the thought of him. Part of her wished that Jack was here, but the other part of her was glad that he wasn’t because he would’ve been so devastated about Mac. 

“Are you sure?”

Riley nodded. “Yes, I’m sure, I’ll be fine. I’ll see you in a couple of hours, okay?” Russ patted her shoulder as she walked out. She passed a bunch of busy agents, each one hard at work. She got in her car and drove to her temporary home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riley sighed as she opened the door and entered. She locked the door behind her and dropped her bag on the couch. Realizing she was thirsty, Riley headed over to the kitchen. She opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. She opened it and drank about half the bottle in one go. Riley paced around, stopping near the countertop. 

Despite her exhaustion from being awake for twenty hours, she heard a faint footstep behind her. She grabbed a knife from the counter, swinging it as she turned around to face the intruder. A hand expertly grabbed her wrist, effectively stopping her from cutting him.

Riley’s eyes widened. “Mac.” What the hell was he doing here? Was he home the entire time? 

“Hey, Riles,” Mac greeted, still holding her wrist. “If I let go of you, will you promise not to attack me?”

“That depends,” Riley said coolly, putting up the walls around her heart. “Are you going to attack me like you did with Desi, Russ, and the other agents?”

“I didn’t attack them, I only released a gas that temporary-“

“I don’t care!” Riley exclaimed. The loudness of her voice startled Mac, causing him to let her go. Riley knew that Mac wouldn’t hurt her (not physically, anyway), so she put the knife down. “We’re your friends, your family!”

“Riley-“ Mac started. He needed to explain himself.

“How could you do that to Desi?” Riley asked, in her righteous anger. She may have had feelings for Mac, but Desi was her friend and she loved her. Desi was like a sister to her. Riley saw how Mac’s betrayal affected her. She tried to comfort her, but Desi had put her walls up and insisted on working. “She’s your girlfriend! I guess she’s probably not anymore, though, because you broke her heart! How could you do that? To her? To Bozer? To Matty and Russ? To me?”

Mac’s heart broke at the sight of Riley. She was obviously exhausted, mentally, emotionally, and physically. There were tears in her eyes and she looked betrayed. Knowing that he was the cause of that broke his heart. 

“Why are you even here?” Riley asked. “Wait, it’s your house, of course you would come here. I guess I should’ve started looking at apartments much earlier instead of waiting until two days ago.”

Wait, she was looking for an apartment? Mac thought she would stay with him for much longer. He buried his confusion regarding that, and instead chose to focus on her question. “I’m here because I need your help.”

Riley’s eyes widened. “You need my help?” Mac nodded. Holy crap, Russ was actually right! His extreme paranoia fueled only by anger, betrayal, and caffeine was actually right. “Oh my god, Russ was right. He knew this would happen! And I ignored him because I thought he was being paranoid and I was too tired to deal with his paranoia-“

Mac stopped her, confused once again. “What are you talking about? What was he right about?”

“He was right that you would come and convince me to join you! I had to calm him down about that! He thought Codex would want a hacker. He even offered to let me move in with him-“

“Wait, you’re moving in with Russ?” Mac questioned. Why was that the first thing he latched on to? He shook his head. “Nevermind. I don’t want you to join Codex, I want you to join me undercover!”

Riley froze and stared at him. “…What?”

Mac sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m not with Codex, Riles, I’m only pretending to.”

“But why not tell everyone else?” Riley questioned. “Why hurt us so much?” She added quietly.

“I never wanted to hurt any of you! But the last time the entire Phoenix tried to fool Codex, they got the upper hand for a while. We got lucky, but I couldn’t risk that again. Codex had to truly believe I defected, and with the entire Phoenix after me for stealing Tesla’s weapon, they believed me. But since some of their operatives got captured, Gwen decided that they need someone, a hacker, to help identify plans like those.”

“And you told her that you would convince me to join you?” Riley asked, incredulously. 

“Yeah, I did. I’m pretty sure she trusts me now, since I gave her Tesla’s weapon.” Mac revealed. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise,” he said softly, and he meant it. He couldn’t imagine a world without Riley, and for some reason, the mere thought of it hurt him to his core. “I understand if you say no. All I ask is that you don’t tell anyone else the truth.”

Riley thought about it for a moment. “Why me, though? There are other talented hackers at the Phoenix.”

“Because Gwen asked me about you. I told her how smart and amazing you are, and she was willing to let you join Codex.” Mac wasn’t sure why Gwen agreed to that so easily, he had only listed the many wonderful qualities Riley has, he never gave any examples that illustrated her skillset. “If you help me, we can take Codex down from the inside. Please. I need you.”

Riley looked at the man she had fallen in love with. She was so relieved that Mac didn’t join Codex. He was still on their side, and he thought she was smart and amazing? Riley already knew that about herself, thank you very much, but hearing it from Mac made her heart flutter. She would do anything for him. “Okay.”

Mac perked up. “Okay?”

Riley smiled. “Yes, I’ll help you.” Her smile vanished, and she saw Mac’s face morph into concern. “I promised Russ that I would see him in a few hours. I told him that I would never join Codex…I told him that you could never convince me to join you… and the others, Bozer, Desi, and Matty…” She didn’t want to hurt them.

“Hey,” Mac said softly, putting his hands on her shoulder. “If you want to back out, that’s okay. I would never force you to do anything. This is all for the greater good. If it makes you feel better, I’m pretty sure Russ and everyone else will be angrier with me, for coercing you to join the dark side,” Mac finished, with a soft chuckle.

Riley smiled. “I’ll help you. Of course I’ll help you take Codex down.” She was ready to end this once and for all.

Mac smiled and moved out of the way. He didn’t even realize that he blocked her path, and mentally cursed himself for it. Riley began walking away, but she suddenly stopped and swayed.

“Riley!” Mac called out in concern. He rushed over to her and put an arm around her waist. He felt something akin to electricity in his veins when he touched her, but ignored it in favor of his worry. 

“I’m fine,” Riley said, attempting to push Mac away. She loved how he held her close to him, but knew it meant nothing to him. 

Mac, however, did not let her push him away. His eyes widened. “Riley, when was the last time you ate? How much water did you drink today? How long have you been awake?” It was his fault she was like this, Mac realized. He hated himself. He didn’t even realize the toll his ‘betrayal’ would have.

“Uh,” Riley tried to remember. “Bozer gave me a granola bar at some point. Russ gave me a snack too, and I think I’ve been awake for at least twenty hours?” She admitted, knowing there was no point in lying to Mac.

“Oh, god, Riles, I’m so sorry… I never meant for this to happen.” Mac felt very guilty. What if she had collapsed outside? What if she passed out behind the wheel? Was everyone else like this, too? 

“Don’t worry about it. Russ sent Desi and Bozer home, too, to rest. And if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to get some sleep before going undercover.”

“Of course,” Mac started to help her toward her room.

“I don’t need you to help me, Mac, I can walk on my own,” Riley grumbled.

Mac chuckled. “I know, but can you let me do this for my peace of mind? Let me make up for it, at least a little,” Mac begged, desperate to make things right with Riley. He couldn’t lose her, the thought of it terrified him.

He opened her door and watched as went inside. She closed the door for two minutes so she can change into some more comfortable clothing. Riley opened the door, wearing sweats.

“Are you going to stay here?” Riley asked.

Mac nodded. “Yeah, I figured that nobody would expect me to come home.”

“That’s what I said!” Riley chuckled softly, before letting out a yawn.

Mac instantly felt concerned. “Okay, I am not keeping you up anymore. Get some sleep, please.”

Riley smiled at his concern and nodded. “Okay, okay.” She walked towards her bed and practically jumped in it. As soon as her head hit the pillow, all the exhaustion came out at once and she was out like a light.

Mac smiled softly at Riley’s sleeping form. He quietly moved toward her bed and covered her with a blanket. He gazed at her peaceful expression, and wished that he woke up to that everyday. Wait, did he just think that? Riley was just his friend. The blonde genius walked out of the room and turned back around. His heart skipped a beat and his stomach had butterflies all at the same time when he looked at Riley. Oh god, he had feelings for Riley.

He shook his head and quietly closed Riley’s door. Mac sat on his couch, lost in thought. He had feelings for Riley Davis, whose heart was broken by him. Mac swore that he would never hurt her again. He didn’t expect her to return his feelings, she deserved better than him.

Mac was absolutely certain of one thing, though: he would make sure that Riley did not get hurt on this mission.


End file.
